Bay Windows - January 15, 2004
Laura Kiritsy

In interviews with Bay Windows, the six Democratic candidates said they support the Supreme Judicial Court's Nov. 18 ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that barring gay couples from civil marriage in Massachusetts is unconstitutional and believe the legislature should implement the court's decision. They are also unanimous in opposing a proposed constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage and other forms of legal recognition for same-sex couples in the Bay State.

"I'm not in favor at all of that constitutional amendment and I would be supportive of the recent court decision to recognize gay marriage," said candidate Richard Gatto of Needham. Gatto, a commissioner for the Needham Housing Authority, called civil marriage for same-sex couples "a matter of civil rights, an equal rights issue under the law."

In addition to Gatto, the Democratic contenders who will be on the Feb. 3 primary ballot are Wellesley resident James Klocke, executive vice president for the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce; Ron Lipof of Sherborn, executive vice president of the Woburn-based Teleglass National Corp.; Daniel Matthews, chair of the Needham Board of Selectman; Angus McQuilken of Millis, Jacques' longtime chief of staff; and Needham resident Terence Noonan, a labor lawyer. The general election will take place March 2.

The Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex Senatorial District that Jacques served includes the towns of Millis, Needham, Norfolk, Plainville, Wrentham, North Attleboro, Sherborn and Wayland. It also includes parts of Franklin, Wellesley, Natick and Attleboro.

More than any other candidate, McQuilken, who served in Jacques' office for 11 years, has actively courted the gay community thus far in the campaign. He won an immediate and whole-hearted endorsement from his former boss upon announcing his candidacy in early November and an endorsement from openly gay Sen. Jarrett Barrios. Barrios and Jacques, along with Mary Bonauto of Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, activist Mary Breslauer; Valerie Fein-Zachary, co-chair of the Massachusetts Freedom to Marry Coalition, are hosting a fundraiser for McQuilken at the home of Jamaica Plain couple Ross Ozer and Scott Gortikov on Jan. 22 .

McQuilken pointed to his experience working with Jacques on gay issues as distinguishing him from his rivals in the race. "I worked side by side with Senator Jacques to protect civil rights and to pursue legislation important to the LGBT community," he said, noting his work to expand the state's hate crimes law to include sexual orientation, pass the standby guardianship bill allowing seriously ill parents - including those with HIV and AIDS - to arrange care for their children in the event of their incapacity or death, protect funding for the Safe Schools Program for Gay and Lesbian Students, and defeat a proposed "defense of marriage" constitutional amendment in 2002.

"I'm proud to have Senator Jacques' support, I'm proud to have Jarrett Barrios' endorsement as well. I think Jarrett Barrios is going to need a partner in the Senate to protect civil rights and move forward on legislation protecting families in Massachusetts," McQuilken said. "In the end that's what differentiates me from the other candidates."

Klocke, Lipof and Noonan also said they would seek to fill Jacques' shoes as an advocate for gay rights in the state Senate. "Absolutely. Yes," said Noonan. "I would and it would be an easy role for me to fill especially following on the heels of the SJC decision. The intellectual and legal underpinnings [of the ruling] are well-founded and easy to justify," he said.

Noonan places his support for gay rights in the context of his opposition to the death penalty, support for worker's rights and indexing the minimum wage to inflation. "They're social justice issues and civil rights issues and I definitely would be out in front," he said.

The Republican candidates

The Republican contenders in the race, state Rep. Scott Brown of Wrentham and North Attleboro resident Earl Henry Sholley, are less supportive of GLBT rights. A Sholley campaign spokesman said Sholley did not want to comment for this article and Brown's campaign did not respond to requests for an interview with the candidate, but both have a history of opposing gay rights.

Sholley, a conservative Republican who challenged Jacques for her seat in 2000 and 2002, has criticized Jacques for being too liberal on most issues. He has also condemned her for being openly gay, telling the conservative publication MassNews during his 2002 campaign, "Many people don't like her lifestyle choice. She came out of the closet almost flaunting it and saying this is who I am and if you don't like it, then too bad. Her whole attitude is that she thinks that women are superior to men. This is problematic when raising children. She thinks that she can be a father and she can raise two boys and they don't have to know how they originated and who their father was." Jacques and her partner Jennifer Chrisler are the parents of twin boys.

Likewise, Brown created a stir shortly after Jacques announced in November 2001 she was to become a parent. In an interview with the Boston Globe, Brown, at the time considering a bid to unseat Jacques, demeaned Jacques' decision to start a family. "They're certainly not married," he said of Jacques and Chrisler. "There's a difference of philosophy there. Are there two mothers there? Are they husband and wife?" Later in the interview he stated, "It's unusual for two women having a baby. It's just not normal, in terms of what's normal in today's society." Brown was criticized for the comments and shortly after making them called Jacques to apologize.

Brown has expressed support for the proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage sponsored Rehoboth Democrat Phil Travis, saying the voters should be allowed to decide the issue.

Gov. Mitt Romney, who won the district with 58 percent of the vote in the 2002 gubernatorial election boosted Brown's candidacy with an early endorsement and has appeared with him on the campaign trail.

Arline Isaacson, co-chair of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus said the race to replace Jacques is "extremely important" to the gay community. "It's a very important race because we know that the leading Republican, Scott Brown, supports the anti-gay constitutional amendment. So it's important.

"Number two," Isaacson continued, "Cheryl Jacques' chief of staff Angus McQuilken has always worked very hard for our community. He has always been strongly supportive of our issues and would be a terrific advocate for us in the Senate," she said.

The caucus has yet to formally endorse in the race, though Isaacson said questionnaires have been mailed to candidates.

Laura Kiritsy is the Associate Editor at Bay Windows. Her e-mail address is lkiritsy@baywindows.com.

Comments, criticism or praise regarding this article or writer -- or just about any other subject of interest to the lesbian and gay community -- are always welcome.

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